Hot Fire Gets Beaten Out
by PeonyGirl1992
Summary: Asuka's life would be less painful if she would just listen to Shinji. Warnings: Contains spanking and references to child abuse


Shinji could always sense a bad night. The feeling of doom hung in the air, and his tummy was tied up into a thousand knots. On nights like this, he wished he would have turned down Misato's living arrangement offer. Surely living in a lonely apartment by himself was better than this—stuck in a place where bedlam was about to explode.

Said bedlam was sitting in the living room and it was wrapped up in a pretty package of a petite redheaded girl. Pure white skin, large blue eyes framed with long lashes, and pert little nose. Shinji secretly believed his roommate looked like one of those ball-jointed dolls—if said doll was haunted by a devil. Even though her face was pretty, the beauty of it was somehow made almost comical by the angry sneer that she usually carried—like the toymaker decided he wanted to make something belittling rather than delightful.

Tonight however, the haughty look was replaced by one of pure vehemence. The little doll-demon was fuming, teeth clenched and on edge, huffing and ready for a fight.

Shinji was glad that he was safely tucked away in the kitchen, chopping vegetables. For once, the anger was not directed at him. Instead—but perhaps more dangerously—it was directed at their guardian.

A guardian with long feminine legs but strong arms. A guardian that had a loud laugh when she drank too much (which was often). A woman who knew how to shoot a gun. Shinji wished he could pull his roommate aside and tell her that was a fight wasn't worth it. Shinji touched his cheek, remembering a time when a pout about an order earned him a slap in the face. It was an experience that he wouldn't want to repeat and certainly wouldn't wish upon anyone.

Not even an angry doll. An angry doll with a loud screech: "Me and Shinji are risking our asses everyday and yet we don't even get a quick break? Why do you even care? You're too busy getting drunk to notice us anyways!"

And what was she fuming about anyways? It was something about a silly school trip, about the pilots not being able to go. Who cares, he wanted to say, there was always next year. Shinji sighed, if he had been any other kid he probably could have taken her mind off the trip and entertained her with another distraction. But he was just a boring boy.

"Drunk or not, I am responsible for you. That is the last comment you're going to make on the subject." Misato, the guardian in question, had been handling her female charge's complaints with good humor. However, Shinji could hear the steel in her voice slowly seeping into her tone. It wouldn't be much longer until the bubbly, cheerful guardian dropped her mask and became a formidable Major.

He could hear Asuka snapping, "Why should I do what you say?"

Shinji had to stop this before this escalated. At least he could try.

"Aaa…Asuka?" He closed his eyes, knowing that his stuttering was going to set her off even more. His tummy clenched again.

"What idiot?"

"Umm..umm."

"Just fucking spit it out."

"It..It's not," He panicked, knowing that the words were stuck. He cursed himself. His father always told him that his stuttering made him seem weak and feebleminded. Now she wasn't going to listen and he just made the fight worse.

"Oh. The g-gg-ggreat Sh-Sh-Sh-inji has nothing to say." Asuka sneered.

Shinji hung his head. To his embarrassment, tears were forming in his eyes.

"Asuka stop it." Misato said in a tone that made Shinji's heart sink into his tummy. It sounded like a powerful tone, his father's tone. Asuka was new to the NERV world; she didn't know how quickly adults could turn on children who didn't give them complete obedience.

"Wh..Wh..Why.. Sh-Sh-ould I? Asuka grinned. "He isn't man enough to stand up for anything. He can't e-e-even t-t-talk. T-t-t-oo s-s-cared baby Shinji? Too busy sucking up to Misato and never standing up for what's right. Disgusting!"

Disgusting. He was disgusting. He couldn't even stop the tears from flowing down his face.

"That is it. I am done. Come here." Misato said.

Asuka snorted. "No. Telling the truth isn't wrong. I am leaving."

"You make your teammate cry, I make you cry. I think you earned yourself a hard spanking. Now come here." Misato's voice was pure steel. Shinji yelped. He didn't know where how this was going to end, but it wouldn't be good. He looked over at Asuka who was seething.

"You perverted…!"

"Well," Misato cut her off, "you can either submit to your perverted punishment or I will replace your combat missions with Rei. I was going to have you fight in the first position but that can be easily changed."

Asuka stood defiantly, her tiger-eyes flashing, fists clenching and unclenching at her sides. Shinji was expecting her to fly at Misato's face and attack her with those sharp fingernails of hers. But to his surprise, she slowly offered her hand. Misato took the redhead by the hand and yanked her toward the couch.

With a small yelp, Asuka found herself pulled over her guardian's lap. "Not in front of Shinji!"

"I think you gave up privacy privileges a while ago." Misato answered tersely, and with a swift motion lifted the girl's skirt and lowered her white panties. Shinji blushed seeing his roommate exposed like that—buttocks bared awaiting punishment. He should be respectful and look away. But maybe a bit of him (but only a small, teensy bit he reminded himself) was glad to see this retribution. After all she brought this on herself. She wouldn't listen to him. And now this was the result.

_Smack Smack Smack!_ Misato's hand viciously bounced off of Asuka's backside. Shinji cringed. One slap hurt enough, but a multiple assault must have felt brutal. But if it did, Asuka made no sign of it. Other than having her fists balled up to cover her eyes, the girl lay perfectly still. No kicking, no squirming, no crying. But like a woman on a mission, Misato clenched her teeth and continued. _Smack Smack Smack Smack! _

"Shinji go into my room and get me the hairbrush." Misato said suddenly. "She made you cry; and I said I was going to return the favor."

"No! Stop!" Asuka head snapped up. Despite her silence, her eyes where bright red and full of fear. She didn't look so frightening now. Just young and scared. Like how he felt when his father screamed at him or cuffed him. Any feelings of schadenfreude were gone. He just wanted the punishment to stop and to finish cooking dinner. For some peace.

Shinji gulped. "Misato…please." He could see the pain in Asuka's eyes.

"Do it. Now."

Shaking, Shinji made his way to his guardian's room. The resident pet, Pen-Pen, was asleep on the floor, oblivious as usual to the turmoil in the house. Among the open bottles of beer and make-up on the dresser lay a large wooden hairbrush. He didn't want to do it. Asuka was going to hate him forever. Any hope of friendship was lost if he brought this to the living room. But, what could he do? And if he disobeyed, he might face the same wrath.

He was a wimp. Disgusting. Not brave enough to stand up for Asuka. He grabbed the hairbrush and slowly returned to the living room. He tried his best to look defiant when he handed the brush to Misato but if he did, she didn't take note. New weapon in hand, Misato raised the brush and let the wooden side slap down hard on its target. With that smack, a small squeak emitted from the girl. Another smack and then another smack fell. Shinji couldn't take it anymore; he ran into his bedroom and put his head underneath the pillow. Asuka's strong demeanor finally snapped. He could hear her wails of pain.

Feeling like a coward, he slipped on headphones and turned up the volume as high as it could. What if Misato was beating Asuka bloody? He really didn't know the Major that well, she could be hiding cruel abusive streak. And she did work for his father. For all he knew, she could report this to him after the punishment.

Terrible visions flashed in Shinji's mind. Asuka's bottom covered in welts…his father slapping her for disobedience…Asuka locked in the brig…all because he couldn't speak out. It was his fault. Shinji closed his eyes wishing he could anywhere but here…

It felt like an eternity, but he slid off his headphones. Light had faded and it was dark. But he didn't hear any slaps or wails. He cautiously made his way to the living room and peered shyly to the couch. To Shinji's shock, the feisty hell-cat was replaced by a small girl curled up with her head on the Major's shoulder, who was gently rubbing the young girl's back. The angry steel had also passed and Misato's face had softened. She looked like their crazy, irresponsible guardian again.

"Come here silly," Misato said, giving Shinji a warm smile. He desperately wanted to run from the room, but he dared not to. He timidly sat by his guardian and, to his slight discomfort; she put her free arm around his shoulders. It felt strange; he hadn't been this close to another person in long time. But it also felt…a bit nice. He sighed and allowed himself to sink further into couch. His eyes were heavy and he was tired. At least the chaos had passed. He snuck a peek at his punished comrade and saw that though her face was tear-stained, her eyes were closed and she was breathing the heavy breathe of sleep.

"Umm…Misato?" Shinji asked nervously " Is..Is..Is…Asuka going to alright?"

Misato giggled. "You worried about the red haired devil? She will find it unpleasant to sit for a few days, but other than that, she will be fine. We had a good chat her and I. I think you may find her a bit more…manageable for a while."

Misato smiled at the girl, who in sleep looked as innocent as a kitten. Shinji nodded, though he wasn't so sure. Something about the girl's uncontrollable rage was admirable to him. It burned hot and wild, and was irrational like a flash fire. It could be cruel and hurtful, but better to cause mayhem than lay down and become a broken shell. Or a mindless doll. Without that rage, Shinji had a sinking suspicion that something hurting and sad was hiding behind the girl's fierce facade. He wasn't sure if wanted to see her like that, a sad thing unable to fight.

As if he could sense her thoughts, Asuka's eyes fluttered open. They were big, sad and full of pain. To his surprise, Asuka reached over to put her arms around her guardian, briefly squeezing his hand in the process. The touch was probably the closest thing to an apology that he was going to get. Yet, he would take it.

Misato smiled. "See? Everything is going to be alright."

Asuka's reply was a whimper and she lay her head on Misato's chest. Pen-Pen waddled into the room, stepping on the remote on the floor, flicking on the television in the process. Some black-and-white film was on, a comforting tale about a loving family. Somehow, this put Shinji at ease and he snuggled closer to Misato as well. She smelled like cigarettes and beer. Not much like a mother, but closer to anything he remembered. He closed his eyes, and easily slipped into a dreamless slumber.

****Author's Note: I do not condone the physical punishment of children nor is this story meant to be "kinky" in any way. However, I felt that this was in line with the characters and story because

Misato has a temper. (Remember the scenes where she slaps Ritsuko and drags Shinji to his Eva?) I don't think her doing something like this is too OOC

To highlight the child abuse that is hinted at in Eva

I love Asuka's character, but at certain points in the series, she does deserve a spanking.

Please review! My goal isn't to stay with fanfiction. I haven't written in a long time and I am rebuilding my skills. Please let me know what can be improved upon.

Spanks for reading! XD


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